1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image pickup apparatus that is arranged at a distal end of an endoscope, and an image pickup system including an endoscope that includes the image pickup apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Endoscopes that include an image pickup device have been widely used in medical fields and industrial fields in recent years.
Technology is also known with which an endoscope system is constructed by detachably connecting a signal processing apparatus that is referred to as a “processor” to an endoscope, and causing the processor to perform various kinds of signal processing relating to the endoscope.
With respect to such kinds of endoscope systems, a configuration is also known in which synchronization signal generation means for controlling the display of an endoscopic image is provided on a processor side, while a generation portion for generating a synchronization signal for operation of the image pickup device is arranged in a distal end portion of an endoscope insertion portion.
In the aforementioned configuration, means that generates a synchronization signal for operation of the image pickup device that is arranged in the distal end portion of the endoscope insertion portion is equipped with a function such that an external synchronization signal is inputted from a synchronization signal generation portion on the processor side and an internal synchronization signal is caused to track the external synchronization signal.
In this case, a cable that connects the synchronization signal generation means arranged in the distal end of the endoscope insertion portion and the processor extends over a comparatively long distance (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2009-45113 as an example of transmission of a synchronization signal).